Scientist Jordan makes a discovery and publishes the results for other scientists to read. Scientist Leesha tries to repeat the experiment and cannot make it work. Her results are also published. Scientist Jordan looks at his data again and finds that the discovery only works under certain conditions. He publishes the change. Now scientist Leesha repeats the new method and finds the same results as Jordan, but another scientist, Winslow, gets different results.

Question

What does this story demonstrate?
A.
that scientific knowledge results from a lot of debate and confirmation
B.
that scientific knowledge is developed by individual scientists in isolation
C.
that scientific knowledge is impossible to obtain
D.
that scientists are really good at arguing

Answer 1

The story demonstrates:

A. that scientific knowledge results from a lot of debate and confirmation.

This is evident as Scientist Leesha attempts to repeat the experiment, leading to a discussion about the conditions under which the discovery works. The process includes validation and re-evaluation of results, showing that scientific knowledge evolves through collaboration, debate, and further experimentation.